A man suffered burns after sunlight reflecting off a mirror set fire to curtains in his home.

Firefighters were called to Park Crescent, in Chatham, at 9.30am yesterday.

The sun had been shining through an upstairs window and reflected off a mirror, igniting the bedroom curtains.

The occupant of the house, a man in his 40s, ripped the curtains from the wall and threw them, still alight, out of the window.

He then stamped out the flames before the fire crew arrived.

Ian Crouch, crew manager at Medway fire station, said: "There was damage to the window and damage to the internal wall.

"There was also some damage to the back door where the man had thrown the curtains out onto the patio below.

"Luckily the house was fitted with a smoke alarm so this alerted the man to the fire. But we would not recommend tackling the fire yourself.

"If a smoke alarm sounds, you should shut the door to the room where the fire is, get out of the house, call us and let us deal with it."

The man was treated for minor burns to his neck.

Has this ever happened to you? Leave your comments below.